Jean Le Boeuf reviews each of the food trucks at Celebration Park

Celebration Park's only downfall is that it's just too dang good.

Since the food truck park opened in November off Bayshore Drive in East Naples, the place has been absolutely and ridiculously packed most days, especially on weekend nights.

Seating is limited. Lines get long. The wait for a drink at the bar can seem endless.

And I'm absolutely and ridiculously in love with it all.

Sign up for JLB's weekly food newsletter, never miss a bite

Clearly foodies in Naples have been waiting (and waiting and waiting) for something like this to open. And so have I.

Celebration Park is the culmination of years of work for local entrepreneur Rebecca Maddox, who sparked a wave of revitalization along Bayshore Drive when she opened Three60 Market in 2012. The waterside cafe, market and wine shop brought new life to the East Naples street, which will soon see the opening of a new brewhouse and condominium community.

Her dream is to turn Bayshore into a destination as well as just another stop along the way. So she rounded up eight independently owned food trucks — serving everything from curry to pizza, seafood to beignets  — and lined them up along a sidewalk that leads to a full-service bar.

It's a beautiful sight.

There's live music. Yard games. A smattering of picnic tables. Parking across the street. (I haven't been able to nail down when parking is free and when it costs $3; better bring $3 just in case.)

I've been eating my way around the place, taste-testing as many meals as I can possibly stomach (and afford). Here are my takes on each of the trucks, in no particular order other than alphabetical:

Dilly's Seafood

A commercial Naples fisherman brings seafood straight from the Gulf waters to the food truck at Celebration Park and to Three60 Market right across the canal, where Dilly's Seafood also does dinner service from 4-9 p.m. each night. And then a Jamaican chef does wondrous things with those catches. Beer-battered sheepshead smothered in a creamy mustard tartar sauce. Limey-bright shrimp ceviche. Lobster Benedict with a crisp-on-the-outside, soft-on-the-inside hashbrown cake. The menu is always changing, but it's always reliable, always so, so good.

Dutchkinz

No matter which food truck you decide to order from, each meal at Celebration Park should finish with banana poffers sticky with a caramel-rum glaze. Dutchkinz has served its traditional Dutch desserts at markets and events throughout the region for years. It has a menu of deep-fried beignets dusted with powdered sugar (the apple ones are an absolute treat) and poffers, which are miniature pancake puffs studded with gooey bits of berries, marshmallows or, for the more savory bites, Gouda cheese or olive tapenade. But if those banana poffers with a bracing glaze are on special, they're a must-try.

Gigi Gourmet

I think I've found one of my new favorite burgers. Wisconsin cheddar cascades down its sides — gooey, golden, gorgeous. Applewood bacon and sauteed mushrooms dot its top. An Angus patty is grilled until juicy and tender. And the best part: a fig and goat cheese spread that sets off a fruity-sweet flavor under all that savory. It's hard to believe food like this comes from a food truck. Lollipop lamb chops. Spicy grilled shrimp tacos. Tender octopus over a bed of greens. Maybe it's not "gourmet" in the Naples sense of the word. But it's certainly food truck gourmet, if there is such a thing.

Gyro2Go

Follow the smells of lamb roasting on a slow-spinning spit and you'll find yourself standing in line for a gyro at Gryos2Go. It's like instinct. An animalistic one, which ends in a tzatziki-covered, hummus-smeared stupor. It happens every time. The truck is operated by Greek native Andreas Visilias. The menu is classically simple: gyros with roasted lamb or chicken, falafel, spinach pies and Greek salads. The baklava is always excellent. The lamb always tender and well-seasoned. The falafel always crumbly and fragrant. Just follow the smells...

Spoil Your Loved Ones With These Unique Foodie Gifts And Gift Hampers

Diwali is just around the corner and Hindu families around the world are getting ready to celebrate the biggest festival of the year. Deepawali is a great time for togetherness and is also a celebration of the good things in life - relationships, food and revelry. A big part of Diwali celebrations is the exchange of gifts between friends and relatives. Usually, people prefer giving gifts that include something sweet and decadent, which are usually ladoos, mithais or nuts and dried fruits. However, Diwali gifts have now evolved to include more mindful and thoughtful eatables, which are not just delicious but also nutritious. A number of hospitality brands have started promoting gift hampers, which are customised to the needs of a whole family as well.

Your options for choosing Diwali 2018 gifts are a dime a dozen and come festive season, you may be spoilt for choice.

Here's a list of 5 Diwali gift hampers with foodie gift options that you are sure to love:

1. Luxurious Gift Hampers by Pullman, New Delhi Aerocity

If you wish to pamper your loved ones with a truly royal Diwali, Pullman's luxury gift hampers are available at Cafe Pluck at New Delhi Aerocity. The hampers contain tea deli, homemade cookies, cake loaves and chocolate bars, assorted nuts, flavoured honey, as well as novel food items like wasabi coated peas. Moreover, there are decorative items like candles and torans to choose from. The hampers start from Rs. 1500 (plus taxes) and go up to Rs. 10,500 (plus taxes).

2. Diwali Hampers by Sheraton Hyderabad

Hotel Sheraton Hyderabad is offering Diwali hampers and goodies, which are available at Cafe Link of the hotel. They have an extensive range of food, wine and gift hampers that are ideal for corporate and personal gifting. They also have a range of bespoke hampers, which can be customised according to your personal preference of champagne and wines, paired with sweet and savoury delicacies.

3. Sattviko Diwali Hampers (Multiple Locations)

If you've been looking for unique and budget options to gift your friends and families on Diwali, then Sattviko's range of Diwali hampers is just what you need. Currently available in eight cities across India - Delhi NCR, Mumbai, Pune, Bangalore, Hyderabad, Udaipur, Kolkata and Indore - Sattviko's gift hampers contain quirky and nourishing eatables, which your family is sure to love. Items in Sattviko's Diwali hampers include ajwaini flaxseed jar, pan raisins jar, gur chana jar, pudina makhana, pizza khakra chips, etc. The hampers can be ordered from Sattviko's website online.

4. Madbatter Gift Packs And Goodies, Delhi NCR

Rashmi Prasad is a home baker, who is delivering home-baked lucky cookies across Delhi and NCR during Diwali. The gift packs start from Rs. 499, while she is also delivering a range of other delicious desserts, including brownies and Diwali cakes.

5. Festive Hampers From Tasha's Artisan Foods, Delhi NCR

Natasha Minocha of Tasha's Artisan Foods in Gurgaon has curated a number of healthful and delightful Diwali gift hampers containing goodies that range from granola bars and nut bars to cakes and cookies. Orders for the hampers can be placed from their official website, for anywhere across Delhi and NCR.

6. Diwali Hamper From Mother's Kitchen, Delhi

Shivani Malik is a food entrepreneur and the owner of Mother's Kitchen, which specialises in gluten free and vegan goodies. Her special Diwali hamper contains delicious gluten-free products, including protein power balls, coconut and almond cookies, and rose and dry fruits health bars.

7. Diwali Hampers By Confection Connection, Delhi NCR

Confection Connection in Dwarka specialises in handmade chocolates and truffles and they have a range of gifting options for corporate or personal gifts. The hampers start from Rs. 319 onwards and contain delicious sweet delicacies like flavoured chocolates, biscuits, rose bars, chocolate coated nuts, etc.

Can You Lose Weight By Eating Just Potatoes?

Potatoes are typically considered bad for not just your weight, but your overall health. Consuming too much potato in your diet can lead to erratic blood sugar levels, weight gain and a number of other health-related complications. But, what if we told you that there is a potato diet for weight loss, which promises to make you lose weight, by eating only the starchy tuber for some days? The potato diet plan sounds bizarre and it probably is, but some people have sworn that they got the results they desired by just eating the one food, for the period of the diet. The diet is based on the nutritional health benefits that potatoes come with, including health carbohydrates and fibre, as well as some essential vitamins and minerals.

Potatoes are rich in vitamin C, which is nature's immunity pill, as well as good amounts of potassium. Moreover, sweet potatoes contain vitamin A and other important nutrients. So, what makes the potato diet effective in melting the fat away and making a person lose weight? Nothing special, it's just that the potato diet puts you on a calorific deficit, making you lose weight. However, this weight loss isn't sustainable and may not last for long, as you are bound to get back to your normal meals at some point, after the diet ends.

How Does The Potato Diet For Weight Loss Work?

The potato diet for weight loss gained traction after American filmmaker, comedian, actor and author Kevin Smith followed a regime that allowed him to eat just potatoes for two whole weeks, before introducing vegetable stews to his diet. The regime is detailed in the New York Times' bestseller 'Presto!: How I Made Over 100 Pounds Disappear' by Penn Jillette. Before him, former Australian sportsperson Andrew Flinders Taylor claimed to have followed the diet for an entire year and said that he lost 50 Kgs on it! The potato diet is pretty simple to follow and involves the dieter consuming the tuber for all three meals of the day. Taylor consumed all kinds of potatoes and consumed low-calorie potato dishes like mashed potatoes, baked and herbed potatoes for his meals.

He claimed to have experienced a drop in his blood pressure as well as his blood sugar levels. But should you follow it? The diet obviously goes against everything that we've been taught about healthy eating and there are enough red flags in the plan for you to dismiss the diet as a fad diet. There may be anecdotal evidence of the diet working for some people, but one should definitely not follow such extreme diets to lose weight.

Simple process makes for delicious eating

Quick pickling — it's a trend cropping up in many recent culinary conversations.

As the name implies, it's a fast and easy alternative for preparing tongue-tingling fermented vegetables and fruits — minus the time, equipment and steamy kitchen involved in traditional water bath canning.

The ingredients are few — the produce, a pickling solution, some clean jars and a refrigerator.

The process is relatively simple, and the results are delicious — and usually ready to eat in a matter of hours, or days at the most.

What's behind the popularity of quick pickling?

It's the natural outgrowth of other recent food movements, which really aren't so new after all, says Chef Greg Andrews, who operates The Pickled Chef in Latrobe with his wife Ashley Andrews.

They sold 5,500 jars of various pickles last year, with customer favorites being dill pickles, kimchi, hot peppers, dilly beans and asparagus, according to Ashley Andrews. Their shelves feature a wide array of pickled veggies, raw pickled foods, condiments and sauces.

“Fermenting and pickling are thousands of years old,” Greg Andrews says. “The methods are tried and true; they've just been experimented with and improved over the years. Beer, bread, a lot of things we don't even think about, are all fermented.”

Kimchi and curtido

The current interest in global cuisines is one factor driving the trend, the chef says, pointing to the popularity of dishes such as kimchi, the sweet-and-spicy Korean pickled slaw, and curtido, another slaw from south of the border.

The Pickled Chef version of curtido includes carrot, red onion, cabbage, jalapeno, lime juice and cumin. After fermenting for 7 to 9 days, it makes a good accompaniment for tacos, roasted chicken, fish and pork chops, Greg Andrews says.

“Virtually every civilization and every country has its own tradition of pickling,” he says, and diners are increasingly adding those punchy international flavors to their plates.

Next, there's the move toward healthier eating, with gut health taking center stage for many people. Fermented foods introduce desirable bacteria into the digestive system, he says.

Finally, there's the move away from packaged foods and back to fresh, local and sustainable agriculture, illustrated by the increasing numbers of backyard gardens, farmers markets and community supported agriculture programs.

“People want something that tastes like grandma used to make,” Ashley Andrews says. “And we have a great heritage of agriculture around here.”

Hectic pace

With the hectic pace of modern life, many of us don't have days to spend in the kitchen doing traditional canning, so quick pickling is a good alternative, she says.

A basic quick pickling solution includes vinegar, some water and salt. Other herbs and spices can be added for flavor. If you don't like vinegar, you can make a brine with just water and salt.

What's good for pickling?

Tender vegetables and firm fruits, according to Dori Owczarzak, a Washington, Pa.-based extension educator for Penn State Extension.

In addition to the cucumbers, green beans, zucchini and root vegetables commonly used, fruits like apples, pears, cantaloupe and watermelon rind also work well.

“Fruit should be slightly under-ripe and there shouldn't be any bruising,” Owczarzak says.

Quick pickled produce is best eaten soon after it's made, she says.

“I'm not aware of any science-based recommendations for consuming foods that have been quick pickled, so I would default to standard shelf-stable recommendations,” she says.

“There's so much room for error that I would say use only tested recipes and treat (quick pickled foods) like any other food once it's prepared — eat it in 3 or 4 days, or within a week.”

Another reason to get your quick pickles on the table pronto is texture, says Robert Grey, farm educator and outreach coordinator with Grow Pittsburgh.

“If they sit more than a few weeks, they lose their crunchiness,” he says.

No experience needed

Grey also stresses the importance of cleanliness in the preparation process. Since quick pickling doesn't involve sterilization via a hot water bath, make sure your jars are clean.

“If you don't have a clean jar, bad bacteria can build up,” he says. “You'll start to see scum or mold growing on the top of your liquid.”

Aside from that, he says, “don't be afraid to try. Quick pickling is really easy and anyone can do it without any experience.”

Grey says he learned the process about a year and a half ago, in Grow Pittsburgh's urban farm apprenticeship program, which he now manages.

“The most important thing is salt and vinegar. If you don't like vinegar, you can just make a salty brine. Experiment with different herbs.”

Most of Grey's pickling has been done with green beans, turnips, beets and radishes. Lately, he says, he's been adding lemon-flavored herbs like lemon verbena, lemon basil and lemon balm.

“I thought it was really cool how nature created these same flavors over time in different herbs,” he says.

SWEET & TANGY MUSTARD PICKLES

Raw, fermented, refrigerator-style pickles; adapted from a recipe from Ashley Andrew's great-grandmother

Servings: approximately 4 quarts, or 8 pints

Preparation time: 2-4 hours

Ingredients:

• 6 pounds medium-sized (2 to 3 inches) pickling cucumbers

• 4 sterilized standard quart or 8 standard pint canning jars and lids

Pickling Solution

• 1 ⁄ 2 cup pickling salt

• 1 ⁄ 2 cup sugar

• 1 ⁄ 2 cup dry mustard

• 1 tsp. turmeric

• 1 quart vinegar

• 1 quart water

Cut the cucumbers into chunks and place in sterilized canning jars. Make pickling solution by mixing pickling salt, sugar, mustard and turmeric in a 2-quart non-reactive mixing bowl. Slowly pour in the quart of vinegar and quart of water. Stir well, stirring out any lumps.

Carefully pour pickling solution into each jar of pickles, filling to the top. You may need to stir a couple times in between pouring. Put sterilized tops and lids on canning jars and close tightly. Let stand in a cool, dry place for at least three weeks before using, making sure cucumbers remain submerged in the brine.

Refrigerate jars after fermenting.

Now Order Delicious Imported and Gourmet Food Online

Online grocery stores of repute have jumped into the fray. Today these select online stores cater to your longing for gourmet food items.

One can buy imported and gourmet food online easily now, at one's favorite online grocery store. These stores offer an exclusive range of brands in the category of gourmet food. These brands include every product covering international cooking ingredients such as vinegar and olives beside pasta and canned foods as well as noodles, jams and spreads, and sauces. All these products are available from well known international brands. Some of these include Agnesi, Abbie's, Olicoop, Skippy and DANA among many others. With these attractive products, you get to indulge your taste buds.

Rapid Expansion in this Sector
In the last five years, there has been a very rapid expansion in the gourmet retail space that includes online gourmet food. This, in turn, has brought about a strategic shift from the traditional and low-cost products to premium products in the higher range. During the years, the select section of the gourmet food that was consumed by Indians has also radically undergone an amazing change. Indian consumers that were once very conservative in their eating habits, can now be seen showing interest in trying out new products. This change in dietary habits has brought about the availability of foods such as pasta, one of the most popular among the various gourmet foods, with different types of cheeses. Online grocery stores of repute have jumped into the fray. Today these select online stores cater to your longing for gourmet food items. The variety of gourmet products on offer from these stores is covered under:

Canned Food products

Food

Jam, Sauce & Spread and

Pasta and Noodles.

The Reasons Behind Change in Dietary Habits

There are several reasons behind the change in the dietary habits of Indians over the last few years. Their yearning for imported and gourmet food resulted from international wanderings. There is an obvious increase in the number of Indians traveling abroad in the last about five to ten years. As people traveled abroad they became familiar with a large variety of food. The Italian food that uses pasta, vinegar, olive oil, cheeses, and noodles caught the fancy of Indians on account of the simplicity of preparation. To add to this was the fact that kids from all parts of India simply love fast food! We need no coaxing when asked to eat pasta and noodles. This resulted in a rapid change in the dietary habits of Indians almost overnight. The online stores did the rest. They made these food products readily available.

Availability of Imported and Gourmet Food

Under the food section, a typical grocery store such as Quick2Kart would offer Sunsweet Lemon Essence Prune and Sunsweet Prune Juice 1l. Whereas, the same website, under Jam, Sauce & Spread, includes Skippy Reduced Fat Creamy and Skippy Peanut Butter Natural Crunchy.

Websites serving across other parts of the nation also have a good collection woo their customers.

There is no doubt that in the foreseeable future the range of such products is going to expand drastically. This is only natural since online grocery stores are always eager to satisfy what their customers want.

therefore find Article, in the future one will see the number of cheeses multiply. There will be a much larger choice in vinegar and sauces as well as noodles and pasta. One will also see more international brands jostle for space in the leading online grocery stores. Gourmet foods are here to stay.

The online grocery stores are fast filling up with gourmet food products. It will now be possible for you to serve the kind of food – you may have eaten either abroad or in restaurants serving continental preparations – right at your home!

Meet the Artist Making Delicious Food Quilts

Tania Denyer is a legal assistant and a mother of two. But in her spare time, she makes quilts (and smaller “quiltlets”) that riff on food and what's in her kitchen cabinets. She's always been a “maker,” with a passion for illustration. But 22 years ago, when she was 27, a co-worker brought in a quilt block with a tea-cup design to work. Denyer, who calls herself “a hipster before hipsters were cool,” was entranced. That same co-worker, seeing her interest, signed her up for a quilting class. Denyer remembers thinking, “How hard can it be?”

While Denyer had done a little sewing before, quilting was an entirely different world. The only thing that kept her going, Denyer says, was experimentation. At first, she depended on other quilters' patterns before she began to make her own. Then, instead of using patterned fabrics, she switched to solid colors, using them “in the same way as a painter would use paints.” She cites Henri Matisse's cut-outs with colored paper as an inspiration, and often cuts her fabric free-form before constructing her quilts and quiltlets.

In the end, it all comes down to art, though. “I do get frustrated by the perception that quilts are not art, that they are merely craft,” she says. “If a sculptor uses marble, a painter paint, why can't a quilter use fabric as her medium and be considered an artist too?” Her focus on food as a primary subject ties into expanding the definition of art as well. Especially because women textile artists and cooks have been long overlooked. “To my mind women have been making art from their homes forever,” Denyer says. “Food is a key part of women's art.”

With that in mind, many of her smaller quilts are designed to hang on the wall rather than drape over a bed. Fittingly, she was recently the artist-in-residence at the Cotton Factory in Hamilton, Ontario, a former cotton mill that's now a co-working space for creatives.

These days, she's especially interested in certain foods. One recent quiltlet featured a vintage spice bottle (Denyer has always been fascinated by food packaging) and another, larger quilt displayed an arrangement of Japanese sweets, with designs made by herself and fellow Canadian artist Geri Coady. While showing a quilt at QuiltCon (“Yes, there is a QuiltCon”), she took a photo of a diner breakfast that she now will recreate in fabric. “Even simple diner food is art too.”

Denyer is currently planning to render a series of vintage spice bottles in fabric, all while pondering the concept of abstract food art quilts. But she's kept up her illustration work, too. (One recent series of drawings highlighted food packaging, especially Canadian stalwarts such as Five Rose Flour and Windsor Salt.) The goal, she says, is to combine her two passions into one, and someday become a fabric designer.

Get delicious, unfussy soul food at this Smyrna spot

There's a special counter service restaurant hiding in an unexpected spot in Smyrna. Hang a right when you walk into the Nam Dae Mun Farmers Market on South Cobb Drive, and you'll find yourself at the counter of 2 Sistas Soul Food. Whether you're starving, and need a full chicken dinner, or feeling peckish after grocery shopping, the friendly women working there will fix you right up.

You can't go wrong with the tostones rellenos, adorable little cups made from fried plantains that are filled with your choice of beef, pork or chicken. I went with beef, and, while I'm sure the other options are good, I can't imagine getting something different next time. The ground beef filling has a complex flavor from sharing time in the pot with olives, raisins and traditional Puerto Rican spices.

The sweet and savory combination is certainly tasty, but it's taken to a different planet by a simple cilantro garlic sauce that's bright green and hums with freshness. The classic vinegar-based hot sauce served at 2 Sistas is a good addition, too. Adding one or both of those acidic sauces will kick the tostones rellenos into a higher gear.

Plus, they're a great value, like everything on the 2 Sistas menu: three tostones for $5. You also could choose two empanadas with the same filling options for the same price. You might as well tack on a three-piece fried chicken meal. Those start at $6.99 for dark meat.

If you live in Smyrna, and you're not eating at 2 Sistas Soul Food, you're not only missing out on their fantastic Creole and Puerto Rican cooking, you're basically losing money.

Simple recipe for fish biryani

The anticipation of Christmas Eve, especially if you have children, is one of my favourite things about this time of year. But it can be exhausting getting to this point, with so much still to prepare. Ideally, you'll have something sustaining to pull out of the oven when the children are tucked up in bed tomorrow night, because you'll need all the sustenance you can get to help you through the last-minute present wrapping.

We rarely get a white Christmas, but it's usually frosty outside, so instinct demands food that's warming and comforting. Fish is an obvious answer, being both light (ahead of the day of feasting) and familiar. Rice, too, because it's so forgiving (see also Meera's vegan pilau). This year, I wanted a break from our usual kedgeree, so have been experimenting with new flavours, inspired by a trip to Kerala a few years ago. Being so dependent on fish and vegetables, the cooking there is remarkably light, yet boldly flavoured, and one brick-red fish and coconut curry in particular caught my attention. This is my version of it: the spices work together to give soft, mellow notes and a signature russet colour that rivals even the most enthusiastic Father Christmas (who may well prefer it to mince pies).
Fish biryani

You can prepare everything a day ahead, then pop it in the oven half an hour before eating. Serves six.

Juice of ½ lime
½ tsp turmeric
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
500g skinless, sustainably caught cod fillet (or other firm white fish)
400g basmati rice, rinsed
1 bay leaf
1 cinnamon stick
3 tbsp rapeseed oil
2 red onions, peeled and finely sliced
½-thumb-sized piece fresh ginger, peeled and finely chopped
3 garlic cloves, peeled and finely chopped
400g fresh plum tomatoes
1 green chilli, deseeded
¼ tsp black mustard seeds
1 tsp cumin seeds
1 tsp freshly ground coriander seed
¼ tsp red chilli powder
1 tsp garam masala
400ml coconut milk
Coriander and mint leaves, to serve

In a bowl, mix the lime juice, turmeric and half a teaspoon of salt, smear this all over the fish and leave to marinate for 30 minutes. After that, wash off the marinade and store the fish in the fridge.

Meanwhile, heat the oven to 180C/350F/gas mark 4. Put the rice, bay and cinnamon in a pan with a pinch of salt, cover with boiling water and boil for four minutes, until al dente. Drain, return to the pan, cover and leave to steam while you get on with the next stage.

Warm the oil in a large pan on a low heat and start frying the onions, stirring occasionally. With the onions on the go, put the ginger, garlic, tomatoes and chilli in a food processor and blitz until finely chopped. Once the onions have been frying for five to eight minutes and have softened nicely, turn up the heat to medium-high and add the mustard and cumin seeds. When the mustard seeds begin to pop, add the ginger and garlic mix, and fry until lightly coloured. Add the coriander, chilli powder and garam masala, stir-fry for a minute, then add the coconut milk. Once the mix is simmering, add the rinsed fish to the pot, making sure it's just submerged, and cook gently for five minutes. Once the fish is just cooked through, take the pan off the heat.

Spread half the fish and its sauce in a deep baking dish, and spoon half the rice on top. Repeat the layers, then cover with foil. Bake for 20 minutes, until heated through, then leave to cool and rest for 10 minutes. Serve scattered with torn mint and coriander, and with raita and chutneys of your choice alongside.

Recipes for fried party snacks for new year and beyond

Room for one more party, yes? Just one more slice of cake and one more glass of wine? New Year's Eve marks the line between one year and the next, of course, but for many of us it also marks the cut-off point between indulgence and abstinence. What better way to tread this fine line, then, than to have friends over and serve them some snack food rather than one big feast. This sort of food often makes for my favourite kind of get-togethers, anyway: hanging out while eating various nibbles over the course of an evening, rather than the ready, steady, go of a big sit-down number.

One or two or all three of today's snacks will indulge your guests far more than any little party canape, but at the same time they are all just about abstinent enough not to weigh everyone down, which is the last thing any of us needs right now. That's why I'll be treading this very line tomorrow night, to see out the old year and bring in the new.

Panelle
If you're going to make only one snack to serve with the drinks tomorrow night, these are the perfect make-ahead choice. They are made with chickpea flour and cooked like polenta, and you can prepare and chill the mixture today or tomorrow morning, then cut it into slices so the panelle are ready to cook when your guests get hungry and you get frying. I was introduced to these little fritters, a tasty street food snack from Palermo in Sicily, by my friend Ivo Bisignano. Traditionally, they're served hot, straight out of the oil, in a soft white bread roll with just a squeeze of lemon by way of accompaniment, but I like to snack on them just as they are before a meal; they're also lovely dipped in decent mayonnaise or aïoli. To me, panelle are the epitome of indulgence, rather than abstinence, in the New Year's Eve equation. Makes about 30 fritters, to serve four to five generously.

225g chickpea (aka gram) flour
½ tsp rosemary leaves, finely chopped
Flaked sea salt and black pepper
750ml water
500ml sunflower oil
1 lemon, halved

Sift the flour into a bowl, then stir in the chopped rosemary, a teaspoon and a half of salt and plenty of freshly ground black pepper.

Pour the water into a medium saucepan and bring to a boil. Take the pan off the heat, then add the flour in three or four stages, whisking continuously with each addition to stop too many lumps forming (though there's no escaping the fact that some will). Return the pan to a low heat and cook the mix for five minutes, stirring frequently with a spatula, until it starts to come away from the sides of the pan, then turn off the heat.

Cut out two 35cm-wide x 80cm-long sheets of greaseproof paper, lay one out on a worktop, then spoon the panelle mixture on top and spread it out into a roughly 20cm x 30cm rectangle that's about 1cm thick (again, use a spatula). Lay the second sheet of paper on top, then roll out with a rolling pin until the batter is 0.5cm thick and about twice its original surface area (don't worry if it loses its shape a bit).

Set aside for half an hour to cool and set properly, then lift off the top layer of paper and cut the panelle batter into long, 4cm-wide strips. Cut each strip into 10cm-long pieces (so you end up with 4cm x 10cm rectangles). Don't worry about trimming the edges: any frayed bits will go nice and crisp when fried.

Put the oil in a large saute pan on a high flame. Once the oil is good and hot (about 200C), carefully drop in four or five slices of panelle and fry for five to six minutes, turning them once halfway through, until golden brown and crisp. Lift out with a slotted spoon and transfer to a wire rack lined with kitchen paper, to drain. Sprinkle with a pinch of salt and repeat with the remaining panelle mixture. Once all the panelle are fried, squeeze over some lemon juice and serve at once.
Chorizo, banana and prawn cakes with harissa yoghurt

These are what I'd sell if I ever jacked it all in and set up a street stall somewhere tropical. I'm probably not going to do that any time soon, but in the meantime, these will transport you there. Makes about 15 fritters, to serve four as a snack or first course.

3 cooking chorizo sausages, skin removed and discarded, meat finely chopped (150g net weight)
100g Greek-style yoghurt
1 tsp rose (or regular) harissa
2 ripe bananas (but not so ripe that they have brown bits), peeled and cut into 2cm pieces
80g sustainably caught ready-peeled raw king prawns, roughly chopped
1 green chilli, deseeded and finely chopped
1 small garlic clove, peeled and crushed
2cm piece ginger, peeled and finely grated (to end up with about ½ tsp)
2 limes – zest finely grated, to get 2 tsp, then cut into wedges
¼ tsp ground coriander
10g coriander leaves, finely chopped
2 tbsp plain flour
Salt
2 large egg whites
3 tbsp vegetable oil

Put a large nonstick saute pan on a high flame. Once hot, fry the chorizo for four minutes, stirring regularly, until nice and crisp, then tip into a large bowl (including any oil that leeches out) and leave to cool a little.

In a small bowl, fold the harissa into the yoghurt – don't mix them together so much that they turn into a uniform mass, but rather just swirl the harissa through the yoghurt, so it ends up with attractive red marbling. Cover with cling-film and refrigerate.

Add the bananas, prawns, chilli, garlic, ginger, lime zest, ground and fresh coriander, flour and a quarter-teaspoon of salt to the chorizo and stir to combine. Whip the egg whites to soft peaks, then gently fold into the fritter mixture, taking care not to knock out too much air.

Vegan recipe for shiitake pho with crispy leeks

There's a whole world of mushrooms out there and, much like wine, we can all probably name a handful of them. Unlike wine, however, there are no dedicated menus rhapsodising about their various flavours. This might be because of the dangers associated with fungi: pick and eat the wrong mushroom, and you're dead, we're taught as children. Sadly, this has done nothing to help varieties such as slippery jack, stinkhorn or shaggy ink cap on to our dinner tables.

We eat closed cup, chestnut and button in spades, with the odd “mixed wild” thrown in. Not that there's anything wrong with that: they're cheap; they're great mates with garlic and olive oil on toast; they make superb keema (“mince”) when blitzed into tiny bits and paired with walnuts, sweet onions and spices; and they make ravishing ragouts. And, when the season allows, the odd chunky-stemmed porcini or dainty chanterelle might put in an appearance at the local market, and can be eaten raw in salads or flash-fried and served on creamy polenta: when you start with the best mushrooms, life becomes simple.

But the diamond in the rough, in my eyes, is the shiitake. Originally from China, and now grown in the UK, it's sold both fresh and dried. These mushrooms unleash an almighty meaty, smoky richness, and add a welcome chewy texture to boot. This makes them a great segue into meat-free eating, and a good ingredient for seasoned vegans to have up their sleeve when they fancy something meaty (that's not meat).

Today's recipe features fresh shiitake in a pho, a big, bold Vietnamese soup packed with rice noodles and topped with a glorious broth. It's balanced, flavoursome, light and a great introduction to the extended mushroom family.

Shiitake pho with crispy leeks
You can top a pho with a galaxy of good things, from crisp fried onions to all manner of herbs (fresh mint and coriander, say), but I've gone for leeks. This recipe rewards the cook who chops everything in advance. Serves four.

4 tbsp rapeseed oil, plus extra for frying the leeks
4 banana shallots, thinly sliced
2 inches ginger, peeled and grated
1 star anise
3 cloves
1 cinnamon stick
2 leeks, 1 finely sliced, the other cut in half and then into long, thin strips
2 bird's- eye chillies, very finely chopped
375g fresh shiitake mushrooms, thinly sliced
1 tbsp soy sauce
6 spring onions, very finely sliced
2 litres vegan vegetable stock
200g flat rice noodles
1 big handful fresh coriander, shredded
1 lime, quartered

In a large pot (three litres or bigger), heat the oil on a medium flame, then fry the shallots for five minutes. Stir in the ginger, star anise, cloves and cinnamon, and fry for five minutes more, until the mix starts to blacken and turn sticky (this will add great flavour). Add the sliced leek, chillies and mushrooms, and stir-fry for eight to 10 minutes, until softened and cooked down, then add the soy sauce, half the spring onions and the stock. Bring to a boil, turn down the heat to a whisper and leave to simmer. Check for seasoning: it may well need salt.

Meanwhile, fry the shredded leek. Pour enough oil into a frying pan to come 1cm up the sides, then heat on a medium flame until very hot. Fry the leek in batches, until crisp and golden, then use a slotted spoon to transfer to a plate lined with kitchen paper to drain while you fry the rest.

Cook the noodles according to the packet instructions and drain.

To serve, distribute the noodles between four bowls, ladle the broth on top, making sure everyone gets a good helping of the vegetables, then scatter with coriander, the crisp leeks, spring onions and a squeeze of lime.

Recipes for light and easy post-Christmas relief

Half the challenge at this time of year is to plan what you're going to eat on Christmas Day and to stick to it, so the last thing you need from me is more ideas about what to cook. Sure, every year there are recipes that claim to be the ultimate and only way to cook a carrot, potato or turkey, but the menu you devised way before 2017's avalanche of Christmas advice even started will in all likelihood still be more delicious.

So, no festive recipes this week. Instead I offer meals to provide light and easy relief from the main event. These are dishes you may well be able to put together largely from what you've already got in the cupboard or fridge; though quick to make, they are confident enough to hold their own against the bird and all the rest. Not only that, but they are as good as light standalone meals as they are as support acts for the Christmas leftovers: pair the little gem and anchovy mayonnaise salad with cold roast turkey or chicken, for example, and you might just wish you'd put the two together for the main event itself. And if that gives you one more idea of what you could make on Monday, I'm (sort of, but not really) sorry. Happy Christmas!
Roast aubergine with curried yoghurt, caramelised onions and pomegranate

A breath of fresh air for tired, jaded tastebuds. Serves four, generously.

3 large (or 4 regular) aubergines
100ml groundnut oil
200g Greek-style yoghurt
2 tsp medium curry powder
¼ tsp ground turmeric
1 lime – finely grate the zest to get 1 tsp and juice to get 2 tsp
Salt and black pepper
1 onion, peeled and thinly sliced
30g flaked almonds
½ tsp cumin seeds, toasted and lightly crushed
½ tsp coriander seeds, toasted and lightly crushed
40g pomegranate seeds

Heat the oven to 220C/425F/gas mark 7. Use a vegetable peeler to shave strips of skin off the aubergines from top to bottom, so they end up with alternating stripes of dark purple skin and clear white flesh. Cut the aubergines widthways into 2cm-thick rounds and put in a large bowl. Add 70ml oil, half a teaspoon of salt and plenty of pepper, then spread out on a large oven tray lined with baking paper. Roast for 40-45 minutes, until dark golden brown, then remove and leave to cool.

In a small bowl, mix the yoghurt with a teaspoon of curry powder, the turmeric, lime juice, a generous pinch of salt and a good grind of pepper, then put it in the fridge until later.

Heat the remaining two tablespoons of oil in a large frying pan on a medium-high flame. Once hot, fry the onion for eight minutes, stirring frequently, until soft and dark golden brown. Add the remaining teaspoon of curry powder, the almonds and a pinch of salt, and fry for two minutes, until the almonds are lightly browned.

To serve, lay the aubergine slices on a platter, overlapping them slightly. Spoon the yoghurt sauce over the top, then scatter on the fried onion mix. Sprinkle over the cumin seeds, coriander seeds, pomegranate seeds and lime zest, and serve.
Gem lettuce with anchovy mayonnaise

This take on the caesar salad was inspired by a meal I had earlier this year at Olympia Provisions in Portland, Oregon. With some good crusty bread, it makes a lovely light lunch in its own right, but it's also fabulous alongside grilled tuna steak or leftover Christmas turkey. Serves four as a light main course or six as a side dish.

6 anchovy fillets in oil, drained and finely chopped
4 large eggs, plus one yolk extra
1 small garlic clove, peeled and crushed
¼ tsp dijon mustard
4 tsp lemon juice
75ml sunflower oil
450g little gem lettuce (ie, about 4 large heads), trimmed and quartered
2½ tbsp olive oil
5g tarragon leaves
Salt
50g pitted Kalamata olives, torn in half
¼ red onion, peeled and very thinly sliced (30g net weight)

Put half the anchovies in the small bowl of a food processor, add the egg yolk, garlic, mustard and two teaspoons of lemon juice, and blitz to a smooth paste. With the motor still running, very slowly add the sunflower oil in a thin stream, until the mixture emulsifies and comes together into a thick mayonnaise. Thin with a tablespoon or two of water and pulse until the mayonnaise is pourable. Stir in the remaining anchovies and set aside.

Half-fill a small saucepan with water and bring to a boil. Turn down the heat to medium-high, gently lower in the eggs, boil for six minutes, then drain. Put the eggs under cold running water for a few minutes, to stop them cooking any more, then peel.

In a large bowl, mix the lettuce quarters with the olive oil, the remaining two teaspoons of lemon juice, half the tarragon and a quarter-teaspoon of salt. Arrange the lettuce cut side up on a large plate, then spoon the mayo on top. Sprinkle on first the remaining tarragon, then the olives and red onion slices. Tear open the eggs, put them on top of the lettuce, sprinkle with a pinch of salt and serve.